by Sharing her story with Mums and Stories, Vramori a Bangalore based mom talks on how the Pandemic literally changed her life. Her work stopped but that didn’t stop her from discovering new talents like pursuing doodling, illustrations . She sketches on https://www.instagram.com/30somethingsketches/?hl=en – 30somethingsketches. Though she is bogged down by many responsibilities of motherhood and wanting to crave for normalcy, pre –Covid times, this mum has many things to share that can inspire others.
“I have been working as a Kidswear designer and been a part of the fashion retail industry for around ten years now. Sketching and Illustrating has always been a childhood hobby and I wanted to do that as a profession and the idea of fashion always excited me. Things have been smooth so far but then this surreal time of the covid-19 happened. As predicted, the retail industry took a hit and I found myself laid off and out of work a couple of months back. It was a rude shock, with me completely not seeing this coming , and also somewhat took a toll on my mental health, but the situation has been tough on a lot of people, me being one of the many. I used this as an opportunity to take a step back, breathe and re analyse/reassess my priorities and goals.
Sketching and cartooning original things was always a childhood hobby. I used to get a lot of accolades in school for my art. I pursued a degree in design, but was so focused on my career as a budding fashion designer, that this hobby took a backseat for many years. I used to doodle a lot for my friends, make personalized sketches and scribble relentlessly in the back of my notebooks, But that is where it stayed always, never getting limelight on it’s own credit 🙂
When I got laid off, I started experiencing anxiety and doodling helped me see the lighter side of things and reconnected me to the art I used to love so much, without it’s conditions of deadlines! My husband has been a great source of inspiration and he literally was the one who forced me to start thinking about it professionally and I finally paid heed to his advice four years later! I have just started out and already very happy with the reception of my work so that’s a step towards the dream!
2020 has been a very challenging year for everyone. I had to face a job loss and purposelessness that added to the generic uncertainty that is synonymous with the current situation. But, on the brighter side, I got to spend precious peaceful family time with my husband and son which our usual corporate time schedules never allowed before.
Appreciating the simpler things in life and relationships made me realize staying at home has been a boon and has only brought us all closer.
I want to up skill myself organically with my art and put out more of my work now and that is the plan for the rest of 2020.”
Talking about motherhood, Vramori shares, “ Motherhood has been a wonderful journey. I had a very complicated pregnancy with bed rests and IVs being a part of the deal too. But a child brings you to find yourself and find strengths you didn’t know was within you! I used to be very hard on myself on my trial and error judgements, any mistakes or anytime he would be hurt or not well, but with time now, I have learnt to breathe and relax. I like keeping the day in somewhat of a regular schedule and that helps definitely. Jugging a full time job and motherhood is a very challenging task and my family has been a support like a rock. Children are always the reason we lose it and the reason we hold it together! Everyday is a learning curve and the adventures will only go on.
As a mom my personal learning is that there will be a ton of people with a lot of opinions on how you need to bring up your child, including very close loved ones who might have unreal expectations too, listen to them, hear them out, but do your own thing. Rely on your instincts and be well informed and learn to ignore naysayers.”
Talking about her advice to budding illustrators, “ I would say, explore art styles, come up with a signature style of your own, and practice for your own satisfaction, not immediate validation. Hard work definitely pays off in the long run.”
Illustrations are copyrighted- Illustrations by Vramori Paladhi -30SomethingSketches
